Due to several factors in the past couple decades the honeybee population has been going down. Two types of mites are the main culprits, which weakens the hive and allows other pests to invade the hive and honey stores. Commercial beekeepers transport their thousands of hives across the country for pollination services to fruit, nut, and vegetable growers which help these pests to spread to the local bee hives.
New treatments have been developed to combat the mites, but the most notable thing allowing the honeybee to make a rebound is the hobbyist beekeeper! New local and established bee clubs are seeing a significant rise in new membership and new backyard beekeepers. People are concerned about the honeybee and want to do their part to help them survive, because by pollinating our food crops, honeybees are responsible for producing 35% of the food that mankind eats.
Honeybees are very docile and do not attack or chase people. They are interested only in gathering nectar and pollen for their hive. The honeybees are such efficient workers that they usually produce an abundance of honey beyond what they need for their winter food supply, allowing the beekeeper to harvest the surplus, usually anywhere from 60 to 100 pounds or more per hive. That’s a lot of honey! Beekeeping can be something the entire family can get involved in. It’s not just for dad! All you need is one or two hives in your “apiary”, the term beekeepers call their bee yard! In the spring there’s nothing more enjoyable than to park your lawn chair 5 or 6 feet from the bee hive and watch the constant flow of bee traffic bringing in nectar and pollen.
If you think beekeeping might be interesting, the Holland Area Beekeepers Association is having a Beginners Beekeeping School on February 11, 2012, at Maplewood Reformed Church, 133 E. 34th St, in Holland. The Beekeeping School will cover what beekeeping is all about, equipment needed, what to expect to see in the hive, where to get your new beehives and bees. Lunch will be provided, and experienced beekeepers will have a Q&A session after the class ends. You can visit the Holland bee club web site to get more information and to sign up for the class.
For more information, visit… http://hollandbees.wordpress.com/
